"Criticism alone won't solve the problem"…Choo Mi-ae, who raised 'public execution,' pivots to counteroffensive after apology

The fallout from Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae's remark about "political public execution" is widening. According to an interview with Yonhapnews released on the 25th, the comment came during her response to a question suggesting that the "straw" controversy had turned into a blessing in disguise. Gov. Choo stated, "Just because people hide behind my controversial remarks and criticize me doesn't mean the firefighters' budget problem will be solved," and subsequently added, "Even if I face political public execution, I hope that appropriate reforms will be implemented for this problem that our society has turned away from."

During the interview, Gov. Choo argued that firefighters' personnel costs should be raised to a level where "the entire amount is covered by the state," proposing tax reform legislation including an increase in the local consumption tax rate as a linked task. She also said Gyeonggi Province faces a shortage of approximately 1 trillion won in available budget for next year. Regarding the expression "straw," she repeatedly apologized, calling it "an oversight in expressing the weight I felt in my heart." The interview was conducted at the Provincial Government Office on the 23rd.

Rep. Lee Jun-seok of the Reform Party (Hwaseong, Gyeonggi) criticized on Facebook that day, saying, "Seeing you use the word 'public execution,' which doesn't even fit the situation, it looks like you're trying to become a 'Joan of Arc' to highlight 'Gyeonggi Province's financial difficulties.'" Rep. Lee noted that during the transition of firefighters to national status in 2020, Gov. Choo was the Justice Minister and a member of the State Council, adding, "She keeps provoking only the firefighters unfairly." He was pointing to responsibility during the formation of the current firefighter budget structure.

The Democratic Party had previously issued a joint warning on the 21st to Gov. Choo for the "budget straw" remark and Rep. Bu Seung-chan, who said "isn't that sucking it all up?" This latest comment came just four days after the party leadership's warning.

The situation with firefighters had been heading toward resolution. On the 20th, Gov. Choo apologized at a meeting with the National Union of Public Employees Firefighting Division, and on the 21st, she directed the formation of a provincial safety task force and ordered an investigation into the causes of line-of-duty death accidents. On the 23rd, Democratic Party Chairman Kim Min-seok held a firefighters union meeting at the National Assembly. The firefighters union has not yet issued an official stance on the "public execution" remark.

Discussion of firefighter budget restructuring has shifted to the National Assembly. Rep. Jung Chung-rae of the Democratic Party submitted a revised bill on the 21st to strengthen the legal basis for state budget support for municipal and provincial fire special accounts. According to the National Assembly Research Service, local governments covered 89.3% of the firefighting budget last year, with the state covering only 8.6% of personnel costs.